The Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection of American paintings is outstanding and includes many famous works. This volume, the second in a series of three, documents an impressive collection of some 285 paintings dating from the late 1830s to the first decade of the twentieth century. The second generation of the Hudson River school is superbly represented by the landscapes of Albert Bierstadt, Frederic E. Church, Jasper F. Cropsey, John F. Kensett, Sanford R. Gifford, and Worthington Whittredge. Most notable, perhaps, is the Museum's important collection of realist paintings by Eastman Johnson, Winslow Homer, and Thomas Eakins. These include such renowned works as Corn Husking at Nantucket, Snap the Whip, The Gulf Stream, and Max Schmitt in a Single Scull. James McNeill Whistler and Mary Cassatt are equally well represented by a choice group of paintings that show the beginnings of the Aesthetic movement on the one hand and impressionism on the other.

The paintings are arranged chronologically by the dates of the artists. A biography of each artist is included, along with bibliographical references. Every painting is illustrated and thoroughly discussed. There are references, an exhibition history, and provenance. Related works—preliminary drawings and studies, or copies, prints, and replicas—are also listed and often illustrated. The principal author, Natalie Spassky, has written an extensive introduction in which she discusses the prevailing historical styles and the major influences on American painting in the years represented. She also describes the various art organizations and publications that were active during this period. Included too is a discussion of the American collectors and artists who were responsible for the encouragement of American art in the Museum's formative years. Because of the wide scope of the collection, the catalogue provides, in effect, a history of American painting in the nineteenth century.

Volume I of this catalogue will consist of paintings by artists born before 1816, Volume II includes paintings by artists born between 1816 and 1845, and Volume III (already published) has paintings by artists born between 1846 and 1865. While these books will be essential resources for scholars in the field, they will also be of value to anyone interested in American art.

Avery, Kevin J. Church's Great Picture: The Heart of the Andes. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1993.

Avery, Kevin J., Oswaldo Rodriguez Roque, John K. Howat, Doreen Bolger Burke, and Catherine Hoover Voorsanger. American Paradise: The World of the Hudson River School. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987.

Avery, Kevin J., and Franklin Kelly, with Claire A. Conway, and essays by Heidi Applegate and Eleanor James Harvey. Hudson River School Visions: The Landscapes of Sanford R. Gifford. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003.

Avery, Kevin J., and Peter L. Fodera. John Vanderlyn's Panoramic View of the Palace and Gardens of Versailles. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1988.

Avery, Kevin J., with an essay by Marjorie Shelley, contributions by Claire A. Conway, and catalogue entries by Kevin J. Avery, Carrie Rebora Barratt, Elliot Bostwick Davis, Tracie Felker, Stephanie L. Herdrich, and Karl Kusserow. American Drawings and Watercolors in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 1, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born before 1835. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2002.

Barratt, Carrie Rebora, and Lori Zabar. American Portrait Miniatures in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2010.

Barratt, Carrie Rebora. "Faces of a New Nation: American Portraits of the 18th and Early 19th Centuries." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 61, no. 1 (Summer, 2003). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003.

Caldwell, John, and Oswaldo Rodriguez Roque, with Dale T. Johnson. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 1, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born by 1815. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1994.

Gardner, Albert TenEyck, and Stuart P. Feld. American Paintings: A Catalogue of the Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 1, Painters Born by 1815. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1965.

Herdrich, Stephanie L., and H. Barbara Weinberg, with Marjorie Shelley. American Drawings and Watercolors in The Metropolitan Museum of Art: John Singer Sargent. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000.

Kiehl, David W., with essays by Phillip Dennis Cate, Nancy Finlay, and David W. Kiehl. American Art Posters of the 1890s in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, including the Leonard A. Lauder Collection. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987.

Knotts, Benjamin. "Hands to Work and Hearts to God." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 1, no. 7 (March, 1943). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1943.

Luhrs, Kathleen, ed., and Doreen Bolger Burke. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 3, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1846 and 1864. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1980.

Spassky, Natalie, with Linda Bantel, Doreen Bolger Burke, Meg Perlman, and Amy L. Walsh. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1816 and 1845. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985.

Spassky, Natalie, with Linda Bantel, Doreen Bolger Burke, Meg Perlman, and Amy L. Walsh. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1816 and 1845. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985.

Doreen Bolger

Print Titles

Avery, Kevin J., Oswaldo Rodriguez Roque, John K. Howat, Doreen Bolger Burke, and Catherine Hoover Voorsanger. American Paradise: The World of the Hudson River School. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987.

Bolger, Doreen, ed., with Marjorie Shelley. American Pastels in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1989.

Bolger, Doreen. William M. Harnett. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992.

Burke, Doreen Bolger, et al. In Pursuit of Beauty: Americans and the Aesthetic Movement. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1986.

Luhrs, Kathleen, ed., and Doreen Bolger Burke. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 3, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1846 and 1864. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1980.

Spassky, Natalie, with Linda Bantel, Doreen Bolger Burke, Meg Perlman, and Amy L. Walsh. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1816 and 1845. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985.

Weinberg, H. Barbara, Doreen Bolger, and David Park Curry. American Impressionism and Realism: The Painting of Modern Life, 1885–1915. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1994.

Meg Perlman

Print Titles

Spassky, Natalie, with Linda Bantel, Doreen Bolger Burke, Meg Perlman, and Amy L. Walsh. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1816 and 1845. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985.

Spassky, Natalie, with Linda Bantel, Doreen Bolger Burke, Meg Perlman, and Amy L. Walsh. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1816 and 1845. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985.

Spassky, Natalie. John Singer Sargent: A Selection of Drawings and Watercolors from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1971.

Spassky, Natalie. Winslow Homer: A Selection of Prints, Drawings and Watercolors from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1972.

Amy Walsh

Print Titles

Spassky, Natalie, with Linda Bantel, Doreen Bolger Burke, Meg Perlman, and Amy L. Walsh. American Paintings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2, A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born between 1816 and 1845. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985.